Christmastime
by V.Johnes
Summary: Tom invites Kendra and Seth over for Christmas.


**Christmastime**

 **Disclaimer: I (sadly) don't own Designated Survivor**

 **A/N: Christmas night, they had won an election, he wasn't going to let them spent Christmas alone. Alex might not be so happy about it.**

 **Enjoy!**

"Tom what did you do?" this was the first thing she asked him the moment she saw the devilish smile on his face. "Tom don't even try to lie to me!" Tom bit his lip looking at his wife's eyes throwing daggers at him.

"Well darling I invited Seth and Kendra here for Christmas dinner" he sees her putting down one of their daughter's onesies and turns to him slowly.

"You invited two more people for Christmas and didn't ask me?" for a moment there he wasn't sure if what he did was right, maybe he should have asked her before offering, well ordering Seth and Kendra to spent Christmas together.

"They didn't have any plans Alex! What was I supposed to do let them spent Christmas alone? They helped me win an election" He knows begging won't help his case, but he still tries in the off chance it does.

"Fine but you will clean up the mess afterwards!"

XXXX

 **Christmas Day**

To say that Kendra and Seth were nervous about spending Christmas in the white house with the first family was an understatement. Kendra tried to reason with Seth that they already spend most of their time in this building so he had no reason to be worried about spending Christmas there too. She wouldn't admit it but she was a bit worried herself. This was really weird for her. She never thought she'd work in the white house, much less that she was going to actually spend Christmas there with the first family. They reached the door to the residence, an agent that was there on duty, smiled at them from the chair he was sitting. Kendra takes a deep breath and knocks, she's slightly surprised to see the president in a bright red sweater with a Christmas tree on. She can feel Seth from next to her barely holding his snicker in, she bites her lip "Nice sweater sir" she tells him, his smile just grows.

"Oh wait till you see what else it does" to her wonder he reaches to the hem of the shirt and seems to be pressing the fabric, she heard the soft yelp coming from Seth and she really has to keep herself from mimicking him when the president's shirt just lights up. "Sir there are," she stops seeing the huge smile on his face "Lights I know! Cool right?" there's a childlike glimmer in his eyes that make Kendra overlook the shock of seeing the leader of the free world in an ugly Christmas sweater, and smile back.

"Anyway come in you guys!" he steps aside letting them in the warm living room, Leo is sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace playing with baby Eva who's in her relax chair next to him, little Eva just laughs at her brother tickling her. Kendra can't stop the smile from spreading further in her face. She was glad this family had found so much peach and happiness after everything thrown at them. She looks around trying to find Penny, the little girl sees her as soon as Kendra finds her, she's sitting at a chair in front of the window holding a book from the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

She leaves the book on her chair and runs to Kendra's arms, jumping in her open arms "I'm so glad you'll spend Christmas with us Kendra!" she says delighted.

"I'm glad too!" Kendra hugs the girl tight "Wanna show me the book you were reading?" she asks, she knows of the two Kirkman kids Penny took the arrival of the baby the hardest, Leo was older and had already gone through having a baby in the family, Penny though was used to being the baby for nearly ten years and now realizing that she isn't the baby anymore was hard.

She grips her hand and leads her to the chair she was sitting on, "Dad got me this book for his birthday" Kendra is shocked, and that probably showed on her face because Penny smiled and told her "Dad buys us gifts on his birthday as well. He says this day is special for all of us and wants to share it. I'm fine with him sharing just his cake but don't tell him that!" Kendra smiles at the little girl, this sounds so much like Tom Kirkman if she was honest, it also explained the singing dog he gave her a full week before Christmas as well as the box filled with freshly made pastries she found in her desk. "Do you enjoy this book?" she asks the little girl, her blue eyes light up "Yeah, my dad really knows people, he always gets me nice gifts." She stops for a moment, her little smile "Well apart from _her"_ she nodes her little blond head towards the sitting area, the president and Seth had joined Leo and baby Eva all three cooing over the baby who seemed to be even more delighted than before if she judged by the squeals of happiness coming from her tiny body.

"Why didn't you want a little sister?" Kendra asks, Penny seems to stop for a moment, thinking what to say "Well I did, but now everyone only cares about her!"

XXXX

Kendra was trying to get the president alone for almost an hour, he finally passed Eva to his wife, wearing a similar Christmas sweater with some subtle differences and just as bright lights, when she finally managed to get him to follow her to his office next door.

"What is it Kendra?" he asks, the big smile on his face makes her feel a bit guilty, she knows what she's about to say will make him feel worse. "Penny is jealous of all the attention Eva is getting." She blurred it out, the president lost his step a bit, the big smile leaving his face "Is she?" he asks, "She usually sits by the window reading but I never imagined that was the reason, she always liked to read"

"And she still liked to read sir, it's just that with everyone paying attention to Eva Penny feels left out. She was the baby of the family for ten years, she was your little girl, the Kirkman family's baby and now there's a new baby and everyone seems to be glued on her and no one seems to care about Penny and she isn't taking it well." He sits down on his chair taking off his Santa hat "What you think I should do? We tried to have her included in things that had to do with the baby, I tried to get gifts for her too when I would get something for Eva, I-" he pauses for one moment "I am at my rope's end Kendra."

"She wants to feel like she's still your little girl, the bond girls have with their fathers is…" she pauses thinking back to her father she lost when she was about Penny's age "She's young she needs to feel that although the baby is here, and even if another comes she's still your number one. We're weird creatures sir." He looks up, a smile on his face.

"Women?"

"No, daughters."

XXXX

Tom sees Penny sitting at her chair by the window like she did since they moved in the white house. She is nose deep in her book, a soft smile on her childlike face.

"Hey little pea." He tells her kneeling by her chair.

"Hey daddy." She doesn't leave her book down, keeps reading only slightly from the corner of her eyes looking at him.

"Will you please leave the book down for a moment?" she folds the corner of the book and closes it leaving it on the ledge of the window.

"I noticed you aren't sitting with us. Is there anything wrong little pea?" she nodes no, her mother's daughter through and through "I think I know what might be wrong though." She looks up "I want you to know that not even hundred new babies will make me love you any less alright little pea? You're always going to be my little girl."

XXXX

"Penny kissed Eva goodnight, I do not know what you told her but it worked" Alex told him from inside the bathroom, he smiled, glad that the small rivalry between sisters was resolved before it turned to resentment.

"Kendra told me a couple things I needed to know and Penny wanted to hear." He says, she comes out of the bathroom; her red nightgown gave him a minor stroke.

"You'll have to thank Kendra double then."

 **A/N: Yes, Kendra helped Alex with the nightgown. Happy Holidays!**


End file.
